Minnesota and Iowa weren’t fighting for a spot near the top of the Big Ten Conference standings Saturday, but the game was just as important for their postseason hopes.

An NCAA tournament berth would make for a successful first season for coaches Tubby Smith and Todd Lickliter at their respective programs, but Minnesota might be the only one with a legitimate shot after its 63-50 victory in front of a sellout crowd at Williams Arena.

“I think our goal from now on is to not lose at home the rest of the year,” said center Spencer Tollackson, who matched fellow senior Lawrence McKenzie and freshman Al Nolen Jr. with 11 points. “I think that’s a pretty reasonable goal. And we’ve got to steal a couple on the road.”

The Hawkeyes (11-14, 4-8) have a selling point with signature wins over Michigan State and Ohio State, but it would take a miracle for them to finish above .500.

On the other hand, the Gophers (15-7, 5-5) are within reach of 20 victories and a winning conference record. An NCAA tournament run would complete a magical turnaround in Smith’s first season, but the former Kentucky coach isn’t getting too excited about victories over Iowa and Northwestern on Wednesday – especially with his team going on the road to play at Wisconsin next Saturday after hosting Illinois on Tuesday.

“Two games in a row won’t make a season, but obviously it’s a start,” said Smith, who has a streak of 14 straight NCAA tournament appearances on the line. “If we want to have an opportunity to stay in this Big Ten race, then every game is paramount. There’s a sense of urgency we have to play with. I thought our guys did that today.”

As long as the Gophers keep winning they’re not out of NCAA tournament talks just yet, but they need to keep playing consistently on defense to keep the momentum going.

Leading the way defensively Saturday was Nolen, who broke out of a rookie slump with eight assists, four rebounds and three steals to go with his first double-digit scoring game since Jan. 9.

Iowa answered early in the second half to take its first lead 42-41 on a three-point play from Cyrus Tate with 11:16 remaining. Following two free throws from Tollackson, who finished 5 for 6 from the line, Nolen scored five straight points, including a three-pointer in the right corner to ignite the crowd and give his team a 48-42 lead at the 8:50 mark.

Freshman Blake Hoffarber’s three-pointer six minutes later then capped a 16-3 run for Minnesota, which extended to a 57-45 advantage.

“The only thing going through my head was that we’ve got to get the crowd back into the game,” said Nolen, who scored all of his 11 points in the second half. “As you can see, we went on a little run right there.”

The Gophers were fortunate to have a nine-point halftime lead after letting Iowa shoot 56 percent in the first half, but they ended up winning the battle of boards 31-23 against a team that ranked third in the Big Ten in rebounding margin (plus-two) through 11 games. It was a surprising effort considering Minnesota went with a quicker lineup, with junior big man Jon Williams on the bench the entire game.

Smith used the same five starters as he did in a 92-72 victory over Northwestern, with Hoffarber and Jamal Abu-Shamala replacing McKenzie and Damian Johnson.

Though the starting five got the Gophers off to an 8-0 lead, Smith wouldn’t confirm that he would use the same lineup again but said he would do whatever it takes to keep his team rolling.

“I don’t worry about lineups,” Smith said. “If these guys are giving us the lift we need, then they probably will be (starting).”

Justin Johnson and Tony Freeman led Iowa with 15 and 12 points, respectively. Senior Dan Coleman also had 10 points for Minnesota.

Marcus R. Fuller joined the Pioneer Press in 2005. He has been covering Gophers basketball and Gophers football since 2007. In 2015, he has started to help out with Timberwolves, Twins and Lynx coverage. Co-hosts One-and-Done basketball podcast show. Hawaii native.

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